Article makes us pro sound like a kid can do2413

Matterport’s system is easy to use and no training is needed, the company says. “It’s incredibly simple with absolutely no photography skill and only a few minutes of training needed. You can hire a college student, even a high school student, to do it for you.

“Our camera has only one button and is paired with an iPad. All the camera operator has to do is get out of the way while the camera automatically turns and does its thing. The camera was designed to be as simple to use as a toaster and once the content is uploaded, the computer vision pipeline in our cloud computing system creates the content automatically.”

Really? I guess my neighbors son he is 10 can get this done for me for pizza money .. lol

There is work behind the scenes, there is talent some are better than others, some care more than others.

Misleading, they should build up our service and capitalize on our growth that will generate demand .. We will buy more cameras and employ more people. Instead sounds like they want to limit our growth.

"Someone has to drill this to Matterport, we ( pro's) are ready to work for you for "free" why are you putting us on the side lines?"

Let's see "anybody" scan the 16,000 sqft total property we just did with 3 buildings all detached by a courtyard and the pool area. Took about 8 hours.
If that's the case, I need hire some of these anybody's and send them in to do this after teaching only how to turn on the camera. I mean, it only has 1 button!!

The more I think about it, as a pro with marketing background I question how do you ignore your current base, we are ready to expand our businesses we are committed, we placed money on the table and instead they want to sell a camera to an agent.

Spend marketing dollars making your base strong and we will become 80% of your business.

Someone needs a reality check ..

Sorry I call it like I see it. If they help us grow our business we would continue to expand their sales as we would need more cameras, more hosting space.

I agree completely with everything above. I am pretty sure most agents are not going to spend hours trying to figure out what is wrong when a scan goes bad. Scary thing is they may just post the link anyway giving the perception that this is a normal scan thus degrading the value of our product. In regards to my recent scan with the horrible yellow blotches, my client and I have decided not to use it as it does not show the property in a positive way. Needless to say my client, the seller and my self are very disappointed.

Like any other business...Matterport needs to sell products and services. We'd all be out of business is this ceased to exist.

It appears they're simply trying different messages to the market to see what works.

"Ease of Use" is a very common strategy in marketing as it tackles the "It's too complicated and I don't have time to learn it" objection.

Perhaps (perhaps) they've received the objection of "It's too expensive". That might explain why I just received an email from the regional sales rep breaking down the cost of a single listing and it pays for itself....along with the discount.

As Matterport providers we are sales people and part of our job is to handle objections.

Now that we know what Matterport's new message is we can come up with the appropriate response when questioned or challenged.

Here's an example:

I received an email last week showing how 'affordable' the camera by comparing the price to an average commission. The message was that a single listing will pay for itself...and this camera is the perfect solution to get more listings.

It makes sense.

So...if I was inclined, I may decide to send the 12,000 Realtors in the SAME MARKET a message with a headline that might say, "Do NOT spend a dime On a Matterport Camera and Here's Why!"

Then I would explain why it makes more sense to hire a service provider instead of purchasing your own camera.

1. Extra monthly fees
2. Several hours doing the work
3. Additional expenses to have someone else do the work.
4. Technology will change very soon (become obsolete)
5. The math. If I only charge $XXX to do a home, you would have to list YY homes in the next year to recoup your costs, not to mention all the extra fees,time and responsibility.
6.
7.

The bottom line is, Matterport's target market is Realtors. It's a no-brainer. Most Realtors don't want to invest a couple HUNDRED dollars alone several THOUSANDS of dollars so it would be SUPER EASY to 'educate' Realtors why NOT to buy a camera.

My point is that messages that Matterport puts out to maintain their business (which is vital to OUR success) that 'hurts' us as Matterport providers can easily be turned into a positive.

I've been a business owner and an employee. I simply see both sides of the coin.

You should have known when you bought the camera on day one that they were automatically going to be your competition. What??? You think their goal was to just sell YOU a camera and then spend their marketing dollars helping YOU get more appointments.

hahahahahaha

No...their job was to saturate the market with cameras. Duh!!!!

Ok. Great. Now you know this? How do you turn this into a positive?

Money doesn't grow on trees...it grows on databases. I've said this before in other posts.

Matterport is a way for me to create RELATIONSHIPS with Realtors. RELATIONSHIPS create DATABASES and databases create MONEY.

Matterport technology will change, become obsolete...whatever.

So what???

Because of Matterport, I have several HUNDRED Realtors that know me in a positive light and will continue to purchase relevant SERVICES through me.

THANKS MATTERPORT...COULDN'T OR WOULDN'T HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT YOU.

When the technology changes and the something new comes on the market, I'll be the first to offer it through my company.

You see, I am not a MATTERPORT service provider but a VISUAL AND VIRTUAL SOLUTIONS PROVIDER.

I knew what my relationship was with Matterport before I ever pressed BUY NOW. I knew they were going to saturate the market.

I also predicted that I'd have two years to 'ride the wave' before my profitability runs out. So, in this two year period, I'm working 12-16 hours ever single day to grow my DATABASE and RELATIONSHIPS.

Sure, I've given a lot of 'free' scans but every month I'm creating dozens of new relationships and selling different products (Matterport, still photography, drone/aerial, 360 views, websites, virtual staging, etc).

So, when you ask me, "Are you justifying their strategy and asking us to reverse their message with the cons of having to do it yourself?"....

...I answer by saying "I'm not justifying their strategy. I just understand it. Also, I'm not suggesting to 'reverse their message' but, instead, just providing the same target market with more information to inform and build relationships."

Remember this...if you think you're going to build a thriving business with Matterport as the basis of your business then you're super naive. Maybe in the super short term you'll see success but NEVER in the long term. NEVER.

I am not complaining personally, I am generalizing their direction as not leveled playing field.

I have been business owner all my life, my dad had a huge business and I worked there out of high school I know both sides of the coin well, but we never ever disregarded our customer base.

Not going to debate the point or complain that Matterport owes me anything, I am a big boy and I know what I got into. When I post a question or a concern is to learn. I am happy with my choice to date, my bandwidth gave me early traction, but I see it hard to expand out of fear that Matterport is my direct competition and you and I know who will win that battle.

Appreciate the long responses, but I think you are over thinking the point.

There's an online service that lets anybody, regardless of background, compose a film score. That's the state we're in these days thanks to technology. Push a button and do anything.

Here are just a few important things the kid with a Matterport camera may have wished he'd known before beginning his "easy" scan ..

==Showcase should be free of noticeable “holes” in Dollhouse and Floorplan view.

Deactivate unnecessary or redundant scan positions in Workshop.

Perimeters should be clean and free of extraneous "spray."

Scan positions should be at consistent height and spacing.

Deactivate unnecessary or redundant scan positions in Workshop.

You can’t scan a dark room.

Spaces lit by bright sunlight can be scanned but can result in poor 3D geometry

The camera should be 5 to 6 feet off the ground.

It's best to start scanning on the lowest floor.

Move in a straight line down hallways -- a zig-zag approach creates an odd experience in the staircase.

Avoid scanning in the middle of a doorway.

At the top of the stairs, create a new floor in the Capture App

===

I'm not even a Matterport pro but I know some of the things it takes to make professional looking models you see on the Web. I'm sure the guidelines I listed are just the tip of the iceberg since model creators with experience probably know a ton of other rules.

The rules i listed don't even cover photographic expertise and artistry. Any human can click a camera shutter, but not every humane is a professional photographer.

I've seen lots of Matterport models online; they vary in quality. It's unfortunate, if true, that the best model creators can't find a way to charge more simply because they produce better models. If the public or potential clients believe a kid can do this, I'm not sure how those beliefs might influence market prices.

I had quite a steep learning curve and are still learning and gaining experience. Yes anybody can do a scan but experience gained can not be transferred by pushing a button and that makes the difference between a average model or a professional looking model.

Matterport should change the wording a bit, they are misleading people with the "easy" one button part :-)

And they don't even mention the time you spend doing a project or all the "non aligning" wasted scans and finding solutions on the fly.

This is their sales pitch to agents. One agent I scanned for had mentioned up front that they might buy a camera; however, spending the day with his partner scanning and photographing one home, he was climbing the walls, so I think he may have a different thoughts now about purchasing his own.

Unless an agency hires someone to do this for them, I still believe that Matterport's strategy of pitching sales to agents will not get them very far.

==
“Our camera has only one button and is paired with an iPad. All the camera operator has to do is get out of the way while the camera automatically turns and does its thing. The camera was designed to be as simple to use as a toaster and once the content is uploaded, the computer vision pipeline in our cloud computing system creates the content automatically.”
==

I assume that every word is true there -- even the part about "momentarily" getting out of the way while the camera turns. The article seems to be a testament to the design, quality and innovation of the camera and the server software. If I was thinking about going into the VR home realtor business, I guess I'd rather purchase a camera that had those qualities than one that didn't.

The article seems to describe the hardware at a high level. Maybe an analogy would be a laptop. Even someone who's never seen a computer can push a button to turn one on. With a little assistance, the person may even be able to type an email and send it. That laptop is incredibly easy to use -- all you have to do is type and click stuff -- and it powers on at the push of a button. Even a toddler could instantly learn to push that magic button.